Southwestern Broccoli Cheese Soup

The broccoli cheese soup was good, but came out a little too spicy for our taste. If I were to do it again, I would probably cut out the pepper all together or put in just a little. That is the only thing we can think of that could be making the soup spicy since we used a mild chunky salsa. We also used No Salt in place of the salt and regular chicken bouillon instead of the reduced-sodium  version.

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 25 minutes

Yield: 9 servings

• 4 cups water
• 4 reduced-sodium chicken bouillon cubes or vegetable bouillon cubes
• 4 cups fresh broccoli florets (about 1 bunch)
• 3 cups frozen Southern-style hash brown potatoes
• 1 cup chopped carrots (about 3 medium)
• 1 cup chopped celery (about 3 stalks)
• 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups fat-free milk
• 6 ounces reduced-fat process cheese (Velveeta), cubed
• 1 cup chunky Salsa

1. In a large saucepan, combine the water, bouillon cubes, vegetables, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
2. Combine flour and milk until smooth; gradually stir into the soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat to low. Add cheese; cook and stir until cheese is melted. Add salsa; cook and stir until heated through.

Nutrition: (1 cup) 173 calories, 2.7 g fat, 1.4 g saturated fat, 9.0 mg cholesterol, 856 mg sodium, 28.3 g carbohydrate, 2.5 g fiber, 7.4 g sugars, 7.9  g protein.